Publisher's Watch

The Urban Land Institute (ULI), is an organization of community builders and members who develop and redevelop neighborhoods, business districts, and communities across the U.S. and around the world. Comprised of thousands of property owners, investors, architects, lawyers, planners, contractors, professors, and others allied to the industry, the ULI convenes each November for its annual fall meeting. This year, San Francisco was the host city. Over 6,000 people attended, in spite of difficult market conditions.

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The Small Business Admistration has amended its existing 504 loan program, which was originally created to encourage small- to medium-sized business owners to acquire commercial property by providing them with long-term, fixed-rate financing. One of the biggest accommodations is that these loans required a minimal equity requirement and the size of the loan correlates directly to the borrower's impact on the community, including revitalizing and stimulating local business, improving and diversifying the district, and expanding a minority-, woman-, or veteran-owned business.

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In Time Magazine's recent feature entitled, "25 People to Blame for the Financial Crisis," all sorts of villains were listed, some very easy targets and some were at the levels of the sublime. It's easy to vilify George Bush and Bill Clinton, as for the past sixteen years, the two were in charge of overseeing the economy.

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Although the real estate market is currently taking some hits and there is much flux in the development arena, there are still some hotspots that are continuing to move with full force. For example, not only is the West Side of Manhattan showing great strength in commercial and residential development, much of it is also going green.

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The concept of the Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) has yet to catch on, especially in light of the current economic environment. According to the Energy Star Program, EEMs are essentially a financing tool that makes it easier for borrowers to qualify for loans to purchase homes with specific energy-efficiency improvements. Lenders can offer conventional EEMs, FHA EEMs, or VA EEMs.

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Last month, PNC Bank was honored by the New Jersey District Council of the Urban Land Institute for its reduced impact on the environment. This was based on the bank's 16 Green Branch® locations, the most of any company in the state, and 42 certified environmentally-friendly buildings, which includes two major facilities.

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The Environmental Protection Agency is now bringing its green act to commercial buildings. To its online energy rating system, Portfolio Manager, which can estimate a building's carbon footprint, it recently added greenhouse gas emissions as a line item. Put in place in 1992 as part of the Energy Star program, this tool gives owners and managers the ability to compare their buildings to those in the surrounding area. Portfolio Manager has already proven useful in helping buildings cut down on energy and water usage by tracking such factors as energy consumption and performance.

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How do you untie this Gordian knot?

According to a new book published by the Urban Land Institute, one of the most important ways to combat climate change is to build developments that are conveniently located near the workplace. In other words, stop the sprawl and make it easier for people to get to work.

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Will "citizen journalism" affect real estate transactions in the future?

Last week we had the opportunity to sponsor and attend the Real Estate Connect NYC Conference where over 1,200 residential real estate executives met to learn to navigate the ever-evolving impact of technology upon the industry.

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The more on-the-ground information you have, the better strategic moves you’ll be able to make.

Existing home sales for October show another decline compared to October 2005. The general media is definitely making a great deal out of the “housing slump,” mostly due to the fact that they’ve been writing about the “housing bubble” for the past five years. With this kind of prognosticating, eventually you have to hit the mark.

Or is there something else at play regarding the latest dip in home sales? According to a study commissioned by the National Association of Home Builders, 80% of home buyers indicate that price is the main factor in deciding whether to purchase a home. There is some reliance on the news media for information about the general marketplace; however, this is no substitute for individual local market factors.

Actually, the NAHB study’s results show that only 19% of the respondents rely on general news media information. So if there is a downturn in your particular area, it’s better to learn from local home buyers themselves, rather than watching the local news. The more on-the-ground information you have, the better strategic moves you’ll be able to make in order to weather any possible storms and take advantage over your competitors who haven’t done their homework.

This article was orginally published as a House Media Network newsletter. View this newsletter in its entirety at http://www.housemedianetwork.com/newsletter/11

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New and expanded markets for Real Estate brokers

Although its desirable to live near where one has a job, the latest information released shows that this is not the case. According to published reports, the number of workers with commutes that are longer than 60 minutes has grown by over 50% in the last decade.

As a matter of fact, to accommodate this, New York’s Metro-North Railroad has added earlier trains to each of its lines that leave as early as 4:12 a.m. to arrive at Grand Central Station at just before 6 a.m. Although this early hour is definitely a discomfort to many commuters, a definite upside is that there are more people utilizing mass transit and this can only be good for the environment as there are fewer cars on the road.

However, the real issue posed is really to determine how far people are willing to travel in order to get to their jobs. Yes, many have been traveling over two-hours each way daily to work in NYC for many years. Yet, what has traditionally been considered the Metropolitan New York area has definitely grown past the well-known suburban areas. This also creates a whole new market for real estate brokers in which to expand their reach.

This topic was published as part of the House Media Network newsletter. Read this newsletter in its entirety at http://www.housemedianetwork.com/newsletter/9

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